Los Angeles @ Washington preview
Nationals Park
Last Meeting ( Sep 7, 2011 ) LA Dodgers 0, Washington 0
THE STORY: Rain halted the Los Angeles Dodgers’ late-season surge on Wednesday. Their game with the Washington Nationals was postponed and will be made up as part of a doubleheader Thursday. Los Angeles has won 12 of its last 15 contests and is 4-2 thus far on its 11-game road trip.
TV: 1:05 p.m. ET (second game follows 30 minutes after completion of first game), MASN, PRIME
PITCHING MATCHUP: First game: Nationals RH Chien-Ming Wang (2-3, 4.19 ERA) vs. Dodgers LH Dana Eveland (1-0, 1.12 ERA)
Wang had a two-game winning streak broken when he dropped a 5-2 decision to the Atlanta Braves. Wang allowed four runs on seven hits and lost for the first time since Aug. 3. He has actually had more trouble pitching at Nationals Park, where he is 1-2 with a 5.57 ERA this season. Wang will be making his first career appearance against Los Angeles.
Eveland was a late-season promotion from Albuquerque, where he was the club’s pitcher of the year. He is expected to be in the rotation the remainder of the season, either to audition for next year or to showcase his abilities for a potential trade. Eveland was sharp in his first outing, allowing one run and six hits over eight innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
ABOUT THE NATIONALS (65-75): Wilson Ramos is hitting .368 with two homers and seven RBIs in a 10-game hitting streak. Ramos was also chosen to catch Stephen Strasburg in his return, although Ivan Rodriguez lobbied for the opportunity. Rookie Chris Marerro has hit safely in eight of 11 games and has back-to-back multi-hit games. Second baseman Danny Espinosa is 0-for-8 with seven strikeouts in the series, and leads all rookies with 144 strikeouts. Hard-throwing left-handed reliever Atahualpa Severino made his debut on Tuesday and struck out the only batter he faced.
ABOUT THE DODGERS (69-72): Despite going hitless in five at-bats Monday, Dee Gordon is 13-for-29 in his last seven games. The rookie is 16-for-19 in stolen bases and has replaced Rafael Furcal at the top of the lineup. After enduring a 1-for-11 slump, Andre Ethier broke through with a 2-for-4 performance with four RBIs. Pitcher Matt Guerrier rejoined the team after missing four days while his wife gave birth to their second child.
FINAL PITCH: Los Angeles leads the season series 3-2, with the final two games set for Thursday.